ARTISTIC ADVISERS
nicole Chamberlain
Nicole Chamberlain is a composer and flutist living in Atlanta, GA. Nicole has also been commissioned by groups such as the Georgia Symphony Orchestra, Oklahoma Flute Society, Atlanta Flute Club, Flute Choir of Atlanta, Cuatro Puntos, Dahlia Flute Duo, Clibber Jones Ensemble, and Hopewell Middle School Symphonic Band among others. Nicole received her Bachelors in Music Composition from University of Georgia where she studied with Dr. William Davis, Dr. Leonard Ball, Dr. Lewis Nielson and Dr. Roger Vogel and was selected for masterclasses with Charles Wuorinen and Joan Tower. She has had works performed at the 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019 National Flute Association Conventions. She also won the 2013 Areon Flutes International Composition Competition, 2nd place in the 2014 and 2016 Flute New Music Consortium, and 1st place in the 2015 The Flute View's Composition Competition. As a flutist, she has appeared with such groups as Georgia Symphony Orchestra, LaGrange Symphony, Gwinnett Ballet, duoATL, Terminus Ensemble, Chamber Cartel, and Perimeter Flutes. Nicole's former flute teachers have included Donna Orbavich (Hong Kong Symphony), Lisa Wienhold (Alabama Symphony), Dr. Ronald Waln (University of Georgia) and Atlanta Symphony Orchestra's principal flutist, Christina Smith. www.nikkinotes.com
paul richards
Born in New York City in 1969 to a musical family, composer Paul Richards has been engaged with music since childhood, including forays into various popular styles, the Western canon, and Jewish sacred and secular music through his father, a cantor. Hailed in the press as a composer with "a strong, pure melodic gift, an ear for color, and an appreciation for contrast and variety," and praised for his "fresh approach to movement and beautiful orchestral coloration," his works have been heard in performance throughout the country and internationally on six continents. Commissions have come from organizations including The Florida Orchestra, Southwest Florida Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Brass, Partners for the Arts Abroad, St. Mary's University/Kaplan Foundation, Meet the Composer-Arizona, Arizona Repertory Singers, Arizona Commission on the Arts and the Catalina Chamber Orchestra. Paul is currently Professor of Music and head of composition and theory at the University of Florida, where he has been on the faculty since 1999. He earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Composition at the University of Texas at Austin, and Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees in Theory and Composition at the University of Arizona.
FNMC LEADERSHIP
laken emerson, executive director
Originally from eastern Oklahoma, Laken Emerson studied at the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith with Ginny Hudson, and later with Dr. Christopher Chaffee at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. Her teaching experience includes beginner to intermediate flute instruction, college prep music tutoring, music theory, music history, and music technology. Emerson returned to Fort Smith in 2019 and enjoys a career as a chamber and solo musician, performing new works as well as classic favorites to a wide audience.
Outside of university ensembles, Emerson has performed with Rocky Ridge Music Center Orchestra, Mostly Modern Festival Orchestra, Fort Smith Symphony, Opera on Tap, Young Actors' Guild, and others. She has performed and presented at a variety of festivals and conferences to promote queer-identifying composers and new compositions. Emerson has served as an album reviewer and contributing essayist for multiple online music publications and continues to write about and promote local music initiatives. She joined the Fort Smith Symphony staff in 2020, where she is Director of Development, Education, & Community Engagement, and joined the Flute New Music Consortium as Executive Director in 2022.
Outside of university ensembles, Emerson has performed with Rocky Ridge Music Center Orchestra, Mostly Modern Festival Orchestra, Fort Smith Symphony, Opera on Tap, Young Actors' Guild, and others. She has performed and presented at a variety of festivals and conferences to promote queer-identifying composers and new compositions. Emerson has served as an album reviewer and contributing essayist for multiple online music publications and continues to write about and promote local music initiatives. She joined the Fort Smith Symphony staff in 2020, where she is Director of Development, Education, & Community Engagement, and joined the Flute New Music Consortium as Executive Director in 2022.
NICOLE RINER, President
Praised for her "luscious, full sound" (American Record Guide) and "effortless precision" (Flutist Quarterly), flutist Nicole Riner currently serves as Visiting Assistant Professor of Music at University of Wyoming, where she teaches flute and entrepreneurship classes and directs the Music Entrepreneurship Professional Certificate Program. A champion of contemporary music, Nicole has commissioned and premiered new works by numerous composers as a soloist and chamber musician. Her live performances have been broadcast on Interlochen (MI) Public Radio, Minnesota Public Radio, and Colorado Public Radio, where she had a recurring role as both writer and performer in the short-lived series, Telling Stories. She has also recorded for the Centaur, ACA, Aerocade, and Albany record labels. Nicole holds flute performance degrees from Indiana University (DM), Michigan State University, (MM), and University of Illinois (BM). www.nicoleriner.com
Elizabeth Robinson, Vice President
Dr. Elizabeth Robinson serves as Assistant Professor of Flute at South Dakota State University, holds the Diana Osterhout piccolo chair of the Topeka Symphony and coordinates FNMC’s annual New Music Composition Competition. Her upcoming debut album Aviary, will feature newly composed works for solo flute, solo piccolo, and flute quartet. Winner of the 2012 NFA Graduate Research Competition, her dissertation Voice, Itinerant, and Air: The Solo Flute Works of Toru Takemitsu, was presented at the 2012 NFA Convention. www.robinsonflute.com
Laura Pillman Patterson, Membership & Communication
Dr. Laura Pillman Patterson is an active performer and teacher throughout the United States and Europe. Currently a woodwind instructor and freelance musician in Northern Alabama, Dr. Patterson completed her graduate studies at University of North Texas in 2019. She is a regular masterclass clinician and solo recitalist, and enjoys programming new music. She is a member of the Aviary Quartet, who recently premiered five new compositions at the 2023 Florida Flute Association convention and at the 2023 Music by Women Conference. www.laurapillman.com
Ashley Shank, Finances
Ashley Shank teaches flute and chamber music at Lycoming College and is the director of the Music Preparatory Program, interim coordinator of music education, and teaches music education courses at Susquehanna University. Dr. Shank earned degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (DMA: flute performance), The University of Akron (MM: flute performance and MM: music history), and Indiana University of Pennsylvania (BS: music education). Shank has premiered several solo and chamber works for flute and, in conjunction with her primary area of research, is an advocate for little known works by Russian and Soviet composers. Her doctoral thesis A Handbook of Solo and Chamber Music for the Flute by Composers from Russian and the Former Soviet Republics was the winner of the 2015 National Flute Association Graduate Research Competition. www.ashleyshankflute.weebly.com
Emlyn Johnson, grant Consultant
Emlyn Johnson is co-director and flutist of Music in the American Wild, an initiative that brings site-inspired contemporary music to American national parks, landmarks, and other nontraditional venues. Dr. Johnson is an Instructor of Music at Missouri State University and has served as the flute instructor at several State University of New York institutions, as well as Career Advisor at Eastman School of Music’s Institute for Music Leadership. Dr. Johnson performs regularly with new music ensembles including Ensemble Signal, Alla Balena Ensemble, and tuo duo, and additionally shares her enthusiasm and advocacy for new music as co-host of the podcast New Music Listening Club. She has served on the board of the Rochester Flute Association and currently serves as Flute Events Reporter for the National Flute Association. Dr. Johnson received her DMA from Eastman School of Music and holds additional degrees from Eastman and University of Michigan.
Ai Yamaguchi, Visual and Multimedia Communications Chair
A native of Tokyo, Japan, Ai Yamaguchi is a doctoral candidate in flute performance and literature at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She holds a Master of Music degree in flute performance from University of Southern Mississippi where she has been awarded a Graduate Teaching Assistantship and received a bachelor’s degree in Music Education from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. Ms. Yamaguchi is principal flute of the Urbana Pops Orchestra in 2014 and subs regularly with Kankakee Valley Symphony Orchestra, the Champaign Urbana Symphony Orchestra, Danville Symphony Orchestra, and Indiana State University Regali Faculty Chamber Winds and Strings. Ms. Yamaguchi has been also selected as a second flutist in the Gulf Coast Symphony during 2008-2010 season in Mississippi and the Miami Valley Symphony Orchestra in Ohio. Her principal teachers include Dr. Jonathan Keeble, Dr, Danilo Mezzadri, Dr. Christopher Chaffee, and Dr. Leslie Goldman Maaser.
Brittany Trotter, CorporAte Sponsor Chair
Brittany Trotter is an active soloist, orchestral and chamber performer based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Along with being a Contributing Faculty in Flute at Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA, she also maintains a large private flute studio and teaches woodwinds at Waldorf School of Pittsburgh. A core member of the ReIgnite Trio and the Incidental Chamber Players, Trotter engages with the musical community in the Pittsburgh area by presenting engaging concerts of classical and contemporary chamber music. As a contemporary musician, her work as a soloist and involvement with Alia Musica has resulted in regional and world premieres in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. A native of Laurel, MS, Trotter received her B.M and B.M.E from the University of Southern Mississippi, M.M at the University of Wyoming, and a DMA and Certificate in University Teaching at West Virginia University. Outside her professional performing and teaching life, she enjoys competitive running, crafting, and reading. www.brittanytrotterflute.com
Cara Gould, Social media chair
Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Cara Gould is pursuing their music education degree at The Pennsylvania State University under Dr. Naomi Seidman. As a performer, they thrive in collaborative new music environments and have commissioned and premiered several solo and chamber works by living composers. As an educator, they endeavor to bring accessible new music into K-12 musical spaces. At Penn State, Cara is a member of the School of Music’s Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity Action Board (IDEA) where they highlight underrepresented voices through performance and education.
emily dierickx, Webmaster
Emily Dierickx (pronounced DEER-iks) is a flute performer and educator based in mid-Michigan where she is the Instructor of Flute at Albion College. As a solo, chamber, and orchestral musician, Emily enjoys presenting and performing throughout the United States. Emily and her husband, Zachary Dierickx, are passionate about their chamber group - Dierickx Duo. Since 2015, they have promoted, commissioned, and performed music for flute and clarinet. Emily earned her DMA in Flute Performance from the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music. She is also a proud Spartan and Buckeye having earned performance degrees from Michigan State University (B.M.) and The Ohio State University (M.M.). www.emilydierickx.com
Hannah Porter Occena, Recordings chair
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Hailed by the New York Times as possessing "rich tone and deft technique," flutist Hannah Porter Occeña (pronounced Ox-SEN-ya) is Assistant Professor of Flute at the University of Northern Iowa and Principal Flute of the Topeka Symphony Orchestra. She has performed as a recitalist and orchestral musician throughout the United States and abroad. Comfortable playing repertoire written 400 years ago or 40 minutes ago, Hannah is committed to the rich heritage and new horizons of classical music and to sharing music in engaging ways with diverse audiences. When not performing or teaching, Hannah enjoys taking long runs and spending time with her husband and daughters.
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past president
SHELLEY MARTINSON
An active performer, Shelley Martinson has appeared as a soloist, orchestral and chamber musician throughout the United States. Martinson joined the faculty of Southwestern Oklahoma State University in 2013, where she serves as Associate Professor of Music (Flute). An active performer, Martinson has appeared as a soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician throughout the United States. Martinson holds positions on the board of the Oklahoma Flute Society (Delegate) and the Flute New Music Consortium (President), and is chair of the National Flute Association's (NFA) Career and Artistic Development Committee. Recipient of the NFA's 2014 Graduate Research Competition, Martinson earned her DMA from Florida State University. Former teachers include Eva Amsler, George Pope, and Jan Vinci. www.shelleymartinson.com
